Every month, several new Sharing Information on Progress (SIP) reports come across my desk. These SIP reports are full of interesting and innovative projects aimed at embedding the Six Principles of PRME across campuses. In this series of blogs, I will feature a small selection of projects taken from recently submitted reports. This month we take a look at examples, as they apply to the Six Principles of PRME, from the Indonesia, Japan, USA, Columbia, Peru and Germany.

Soegijaprantata Catholic University’s Strategic Plan 2011-2019 focuses on the school becoming ‘Green’ in their organisational management, curricula design, and in the implementation of teaching, research and community service. They aim to actively participate in national and international organisations engaged in environmental and social issues, while educating students, business, government, society and other stakeholders. Their flagship event, an international conference focused on Greenpreneurship, takes place on campus every three years, and will next take place in September 2015.

Kwansei Gakuin University signed an agreement in 2006 with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Japan, whereby it admits 3 refugees chosen by the UNHCR to the university each year. Students admitted are exempt from all tuition fees. There are many cases of refugees who cannot enter Japanese universities because of the high cost of tuition and living, and the difficulty of getting a certificate of graduation from their previous schools in their home country. At KGU, their goal is to give these refugees a higher education and the specialised skills necessary to become leaders in contributing to peace and economic progress, working either in Japan, or in their home countries. The university also wants them to study together with Japanese students so that all involved can work together to solve such worldwide problems as persecution and conflict.

Students in Cameron School of Business’s marketing and management classes take part in a Microcredit lending programme. Through this programme students participate in more than 50 loans to assist small businesses in more than 50 countries. The programme supports no-interest loans and so far the programme has achieved a 100% repayment record. Each semester students apply ideas covered in class to select loan recipients using demographic, psychographic and other data from Kiva, an international non-governmental organisation.

UASM has been looking at assessing outcomes and/or impacts of internalising the Principles of PRME, to explore the extent to which academic programmes and research in this area influence students, to explore what differences alumni are making in the organisations they work for, and the impact on society as a whole. Each director of academic programmes was asked to evaluate what their alumni did post graduation, the effects of different teaching methods, and to assess how research has promoted responsible leadership and sustainable development in organisations. They will be reporting their findings through their SIP reports.

IESA has been involved with bottom of the pyramid research in Venezuela, and is developing mechanisms to make this practical knowledge available, to encourage companies to develop products and services targeting these markets. They are exploring the purchasing decisions of this group of consumers by visiting their communities, markets, and surroundings to better understand their needs, aspirations, motivations and values. In partnership with the Metropolitan Mayor’s office in Caracas, IESA has also conducted two free workshops on Finance for Micro entrepreneurs for a group of more than 90 people from various sectors of the metropolitan area of Petare, a highly populated slum neighborhood.

Proyecto Biohuerto, led by the University’s Center of Environmental Studies, aims to raise awareness of environmental responsibility and in particular sustainable agriculture, in order to increase the quality of life of the inhabitants of the community of Emmanuel in the province of Huarochiri in Peru. Aimed at both adults and children, a number of workshops and events are planned around the topic—as it relates to the inhabitants of the community—by faculty as well as community leaders. A guide and audiovisual material is also being developed for use by professors at other institutions interested in putting in place similar projects.

Having outgrown its current location, Frankfurt School of Finance and Management announced the development of a new campus in central Frankfurt. Along with the purchase of the new campus site it launched an international architectural and planner competition to submit designs focused on creating a “green campus.” The vision includes sustainable design features such as energy reduction, optimisation and production, and minimising the overall environmental impact of the campus, the need for artificial lighting, and costly heating and ventilation solutions, to name but a few. The campus is scheduled for completion in 2017.